In a memory such as a NAND, non-volatile memory, for example, there are frequently restrictions against performing read and write operations at the same time in a particular memory. However, a read operation may typically be completed much faster than a write operation. Moreover, the results of read operations are frequently needed more quickly than the completion of write operations. Thus, if the system is forced to await the completion of a write operation before proceeding with a read operation, system performance may be adversely affected.
One approach to address this issue has been to pre-empt ongoing write operations to allow a subsequent read operation to proceed. Accordingly, in one known technique, the system issues a suspend command to the memory to cause the memory to suspend an ongoing write operation. After the suspend operation has been completed, the system issues the read operation to the memory. Once the read operation has been completed by the memory, the system transfers the results of the read operation from the memory. After the transfer operation has been completed, the system issues a resume command to the memory, permitting the memory to terminate the suspension and subsequently complete the previously suspended write operation.